Sometimes the memories resurface with such veracity so as to take my breath away with the pain and utter helplessness I have tried to bury. Maybe we are not meant to forget our worst times. Maybe they are to be reminders so that we appreciate everything better that comes before and after, even when that better doesn’t seem good enough.I am sitting on our sofa in our family room settling in to watch some TV. The kids have gone to bed under protest. The house is quiet and I’ve turned the fir … [Read more...]

There's a lot brewing in the American autism community this week, and while I'm mulling things over and how I feel about it (it's coming in a later post, I promise), I thought I'd leave autism out of the picture today (gasp! Is that possible?) and share with you some interesting hijab-related articles that have come my way from some our wonderful Patheos bloggers.I rarely write about the hijab (headscarf) on my blog, because there are much better writers covering all angles of this … [Read more...]

By Saman Qureshi This is a guest post by Saman Qureshi, a colleague and friend of mine who blogs at Biscuits and Banarsi. Saman attended the Islamic Relief USA Day of Dignity Eid Festival two weeks back, where she and her children happened to wander over to the Special Needs Eids celebration, hosted by MAS-DC (Muslim American Society, DC Chapter). I had planned to attend the event with Lil D and our family and has traveled to the Northern Virginia/DC/Maryland area that weekend to my mother's. … [Read more...]

There are a few activities we really look forward to every year with Lil D, events geared towards the special needs population that embrace them and cater to their different needs; events that make every effort of accommodation and celebrate individuals with different abilities. These are the events where we can take easy breaths and not worry over the thousand little details we usually worry about. The events where we can say, these is our tribe, and nothing my kid does or doesn’t do will faze a … [Read more...]

The day after speaking at the 50th annual Islamic Society of North American conference in Washington, D.C., I was back at home in my basement hanging with Lil D. He was roaming about, spinning his beads and calling “Maw-maw! Maw-maw! Maw-maw” – very much caught up in his stim and oblivious to the world. Every so often he stopped and would come close to me, put his face in mine and say nonsensical words like “Oweeowee owee. Maw-maw! Maw-maw!”As if to say – ok Mamma, you had an audience, you sa … [Read more...]

I’m taking off my mom/autism/Muslim-American journalist hat right now and putting on my Patheos Muslim Channel Managing Editor hat to announce a Ramadan project we’re doing at our channel which, I hope, will help forge new and interesting interfaith learning sessions, bring the concept of fasting in Ramadan and all it means to a wider audience and help Muslims themselves reconnect with the beauty of this month.We are embarking on a Fasting Project (for the lack of a better title) this month a … [Read more...]

I have very vivid memories of the things we did on the 15th of Sha’ban growing up – we threw down hard on Shabaan, with extra ibadat (worship), nafil (extra) prayers and of course fatiha (reciting prayers over some food as an offering of blessings, not to be confused with the Al-Fatiha - the first surah in the Quran). I never questioned where what we did fell in the realm of Islamic practices. My parents did these things on this date and as their kids, we followed along.Shabaan is the eighth … [Read more...]